


Promise

by Hiddenetoiles



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: I always blame the kdramas, I blame the fanart, I live on angst, and k-dramas, why did I start another one?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-25
Updated: 2016-03-25
Packaged: 2018-05-29 02:25:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6355012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hiddenetoiles/pseuds/Hiddenetoiles
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Stupid, of course we’ll always be there for each other,” assures Hajime. He squeezes Tooru for good measure. He finally lets go, and the two stare at each other’s damp faces, giving a final bittersweet smile in the last days of their carefree summer. </p><p>7 years later, Hajime is still aching as he realizes that living without your better half is almost unbearable. </p><p>He is also realizing that he is a horrible, horrible liar. </p><p>Or maybe he just isn’t meant to keep promises.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Promise

"Promise me something?" whispers Tooru as he holds onto his best friend's firm back. 

 

Hajime shivers slightly, feeling the whisper warm his cold neck. They were outside in the rain without any protection of an umbrella. What had started as a soft drizzle was now turning into a violent storm with a heavy downpouring of rain. Hajime's hair was starting to soften, and he gently presses his hands onto Tooru's back in a tender motion. 

 

"What is it?" he asks, almost afraid of what covenant they will build tonight.  

 

"That no matter where we are, even if we are miles apart, we will always be there for each other," breathes Tooru, still hugging Hajime. He squeezes him a little tighter, and Hajime is aching; not because of Tooru's tight grasp on him, not because of the harsh precipitation soaking his entire body, and not because of the stares he is receiving from random bystanders walking down the street with their colorful umbrellas. Hajime is aching because he knows that by sealing this promise, he must acknowledge that both of them will have to start a new life without the presence of the other. And how exactly do you start a new life without your better half? Hajime certainly has no idea.

 

“Iwa-chan?” asks Tooru weakly. He starts to let go, but Hajime refuses to let go of his warmth, even if in a few seconds, all hints of Tooru’s scent would wash away.

 

“Stupid, of course we’ll always be there for each other,” assures Hajime. He squeezes Tooru for good measure. He finally lets go, and the two stare at each other’s damp faces, giving a final bittersweet smile in the last days of their carefree summer.

 

7 years later, Hajime is still aching as he realizes that living without your better half is almost unbearable.

 

He is also realizing that he is a horrible, horrible liar.

 

Or maybe he just isn’t meant to keep promises.

 

 

 ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

 

 

 

            “How many times did they score?! This team is crazy, I tell you!”

           

            “Hell, we might actually win gold this year!”

 

            “We better! Look at the talent we have on this young team. Mark my words, they are going to go far.”

 

            Hajime is trying to block out the enveloping noise, but he finds it hard to do when you share a huge office room with five other people who are _screaming_ over the content on the large television set that is placed dead center in the room.

 

            “Oh my god, they’re all so hot!”

           

            “Yeah no kidding, check out their muscles!”

 

            “Ayumi-chan, I was talking about their faces…”

 

            “Ooh, that too of course!”

           

“Can you ladies go one minute without squealing over a pretty boy? Such shallow and superficial co-workers we have here. ”

 

            A snarky laugh erupts in the bustling room, causing it to be more heated as if it isn’t already.

 

            “Wow, how dare you call _us_ shallow and superficial when you men are always complaining about how you’re stuck with us. In case you haven’t noticed, the feeling is mutual! You men are all oafs. Not one handsome gentleman is in this room.”

 

            There are more laughs and feisty high-fives are passed around. The spectators continue to chat around with great and boisterous movements, and when they start screaming again in high pitched shrill sounds, Hajime slams his fists on his desk. He rises up and glares at his co-workers’ direction, but of course, they are much too focused on what is going on the television screen. Hajime takes a moment to see what they are yelling about, and when he notices what they are actually watching, he feels a knife twist in his stomach.

 

            “OOOh, Oikawa Tooru is serving again!” cheers his female co-workers as the men pump their fists in admiration.

           

            Hajime wordlessly watches the tall and lean athlete with the number 4 printed on the back of his black uniform perform a jump serve. The startling sound of the ball hitting his hands and flying across the stadium is almost haunting, and even the opponents on the other team watch with awe. No one is able to receive it. How can they? It is yet again, another perfect service ace.

 

The crowd cheers in excitement, and they rise to their feet and shout on the top of their lungs the star’s name. “Oikawa Tooru, Oikawa Tooru, Oikawa Tooru!”

 

Goosebumps start forming on Hajime’s tanned skin, and he knows that he cannot blame the temperature in the room for this sudden occurrence because the room is far too hot to be causing a trail of bumps on every part of Hajime’s body.

 

            “He is so perfect! What would we do without him?” a female co-worker sighs, fluttering her pink eyelashes repeatedly.

 

            “The best setter our country has seen so far,” agrees another female co-worker.  

           

            “Ok, he’s good, but he’s not the ace,” voices a male co-worker, pushing up his glasses on the ridge of his sweaty nose. “There’s Ushijima for that. And we have that other setter who is known to be a prodigy.”

 

            “Don’t bother Ren, they just like Oikawa Tooru because of his _pretty face_ ,” snickers a male co-worker.

           

            “Please do something about your petty jealousy!” sniffs the women.

 

            “SHH, He’s going to serve again!” a voice exclaims, and everyone waits with their breaths held. The referee blows his whistle, and the acclaimed setter serves once again.

Time is almost frozen, except the only movement in the world is the direction and strength of the volleyball in this game. Hajime watches the ball in a tranced manner like everybody else, and sees it land perfectly inside the bounds. Another service ace.

           

            Pandemonium ensues, and the brilliant server gives a victorious peace sign. The game concludes with Team Japan winning two of the three sets. The camera focuses on the Japanese athletes who are bowing to the audience in the stadium, thankful for their support. Hajime watches the #4 athlete waving and smiling brightly to his fans. The sweat still visible on his forehead only makes him glow as he basks in the praises of everyone. Hajime jerks his head away from the television screen, hoping the pain in his stomach would go away. He shouldn’t have bothered to watch. Did he even have the right?

           

“He’s great, isn’t he?” says a sudden voice, directed towards Hajime. Hajime looks up, and he is relieved that the speaker is just Kenta, one of his friendly co-workers who Hajime gets along with fairly well.

 

“I guess,” replies back Hajime with a tepid shrug. “I was wondering what all the commotion was about, and it turns out it was just volleyball game. It’s not even an official game, it’s a practice game.”

 

“But still, we won,” chirps Kenta. He tips his head to the side, a habitual movement that he did whenever he was curious. “I thought you would be excited about this since you’re such a health nut.”

 

Hajime rolls his eyes and punches Kenta lightly in a good natured way. “I haven’t gone to the gym in a while, I barely work out Kenta,” he reminds his friend. “I stopped paying the membership fee too.”

“What?!” exclaims a shrill voice, and Hajime and Kenta instantly cringe at the loud decibel.

 

“Please use your inside voice Hitomi-chan,” chides Kenta. “Some of us actually value our eardrums and don’t want to go deaf.”

 

“Oh shut up Kenta,” replies Hitomi, one of the office workers on Hajime’s team. She always wore heavy make-up, and the guys in the office would tease her mercilessly by nicknaming her the clown. “I just overheard that Hajime actually doesn’t work out? Which I cannot believe because there is no way a man could have such defined muscles if he doesn’t go out to the gym every day.”

 

“Hitomi, since when did you have the hots for Hajime?” laughs Takumi, another one of Hajime’s male co-workers. He grins at her, and she just purses her red lips together in an annoyed fashion.

 

“I don’t have a crush on anybody in this hellhole we call our office,” she defends as her female co-workers giggle. “But we all know that Hajime has some nice muscles. I’ve got an eye for these sorts of things.”

 

“Ok, enough talk about stupid things like my muscles,” interrupts Hajime before the conversation continues to head in this weird direction. “Let’s focus on what we were doing before you were all watching the TV. We have a contract to complete before night comes around, and I definitely do not want to work overtime.”

 

Everyone groans when Hajime mentions overtime, and they scramble back to their seats to begin their work. Kenta gives Hajime a knowing smile. “No wonder you’re our team leader Hajime. You know what buttons to push to motivate everyone to work.”

 

“Well someone’s gotta be the responsible one,” sighs Hajime. He hands Kenta a brown envelope. “Look this over for me, will you? I need to look over some other documents before we put together the final contract for the shipment.”

 

“Yes sir,” jokes Kenta as he receives the parcel. He gives Hajime one more curious look before he retreats to his desk.

 

The typical ambiance of the office room returned as everyone is frantically on the phone and their computer, going about their usual business. Hajime can still hear the ongoing noise from the television however, and he walks up to grab the remote to turn it off. With bated hesitation, Hajime’s fingers lingers on the power button, and he reluctantly lifts his eyes to stare directly at the television.

 

Reporters are stationed on the scene, eagerly getting interviews from the winning athletes who are noticeably fatigued but clearly ecstatic they won. Hajime focuses on the current ongoing interview with the star server, #4, who laughs every now and then with the love-struck female reporter. With a pleasant smile and twinkle in his bright eyes, he calmly thanks his family and fans for their astounding support. He finishes the interview with his signature wink and peace sign, and Hajime feels a wind of nostalgia gust over him, bringing the faint but familiar scent of rain and cherry blossoms. A little startled at such a vivid scent, Hajime takes a step back from the television set, and the scent instantly disappears like a forlorn wish on a disappearing shooting star.         

 

“Hajime, you alright?” asks Kenta, breaking Hajime’s concentration.

 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” replies Hajime abruptly. He firmly turns the television off with the remote and returns to his seat, his heart beating at an irregular pace with an aching pain.

 

“You sure? You look sort of pale,” says his friend with a worried look on his face. “Why don’t you take a quick break?” He gives Hajime a reassuring smile. Hajime shrugs it off but everyone in the office yells at him to get his butt out of the room for a short break so he relents and calmly walks out to the roof of the tall company building to get some fresh air.

 

He closes his eyes in the peaceful and quiet atmosphere as his heartbeat returns to his regular pace, a slow thump resonating in his chest every still second. A lingering aching pain still remains though, and Hajime wonders if he needs to take his medication again. The doctor did warn him that he should take more of the prescribed amount if the pain persisted, but Hajime knows the side effects will only interfere with his work. Hajime opens his tired eyes and stares at the sun that was slowly setting down in the horizon in a lazy motion. Stretching out his hand, he cups his hand around the sun like he used to do when he was a young child. Hajime smiles at his childish but innocent gestures, and he breathes a sigh of relief. Even if he is only lamely convincing himself, Hajime swears to himself he will be okay. For seven years, he was able to hold on somehow and manage to live normal life. A normal life without _him_. Of course there are times when Hajime is shaken up, but Hajime needed to just strive forward. _Forget the past_. _Bury it._ Determined, Hajime stands straight up, readjusts his blue tie and company ID. His head held high, Hajime walks back to the office, resolute and strong. He is going to be okay.

 

“Oh, you’re back Iwaizumi,” says a familiar voice when Hajime makes his return.

 

“Kawasaki-san, what brings you here?” asks Hajime, surprised to see his supervisor in their office room. He looks at his co-worker’s facial expressions, but everyone just gives him a clueless response. “If you’re wondering about the latest report, we’re all working on that right now…”

 

“Oh, I’m sure you are all on top of that,” chuckles Kawasaki. He taps Hajime’s shoulder in a warm gesture with a big smile. “I wanted to make a very important announcement!”

 

Hajime stares back at his middle-aged supervisor in confusion. “Important announcement?” he repeats, racking his brain for any hidden surprises that might come his way. He looks towards Kenta who is tilting his head in curiosity.

 

“As our finance managerial company is coming close to our 20th anniversary, we decided to collaborate with a new rising Japanese athletic brand,” explains Kawasaki excitedly. “And that very brand just so happens to be sponsoring our excellent national volleyball team! It is an honor indeed!” He laughs to himself while everyone else in the room widens their eyes in surprise.

 

“Our company is going to help manage RISE?” squeaks Ayumi as the rest of the office workers cannot believe their ears. “That is incredible sir! RISE is very closely connected to the Volleyball team.”

 

“Which means we will have connections to them directly now too,” muses Kenta. He whistles. “That’s some fantastic networking.”

 

“Yes, well, the CEO asked our department to head the project,” informs Kawasaki to the team. “I want this team in particular to lead it of course.” He beams at Hajime earnestly. “You are all an excellent asset to this company, especially you Iwaizumi! You should be very proud of yourselves. Not many people get this chance! I assure you, there will be lots of bonuses if this goes well.” He winks at Hajime who can only return a forced smile. Right now, his head is swimming with questions and concerns.

 

“Does this mean we might be able to meet the Volleyball team?!” asks Hitomi.

 

“The probability of that is very great!” responds Kawasaki with a satisfied grin. “Our annual company gala that is coming up next week is going to invite the team in order to get us more acquainted before we officially begin. You all must attend of course.”     

 

“Oh my god, I have to let Harumi know, she is going to be so jealous!” gasps Hitomi in between shrieks of joy as the male co-workers whisper in excitement.

 

“This is great news, isn’t it Hajime?” laughs Kenta, looking towards Hajime who he sees biting his lips with a strange expression on his face.

 

“Best of luck to you all!” congratulates their supervisor, not noticing Hajime’s look of apprehension. He thumps Hajime on his back and then heads out after making his important announcement.  

 

“Can you believe our luck?!”

“It’s not all due to luck, it’s because we’re one damn talented team!”

“This is a dream come true…”

 

“Hajime?”

 

Hajime’s heart paces again, and he can hear his breathing become irregular as a result. He grips the side of his chair to balance himself in case his legs give out, but Hajime is already unable to stand properly. Along with his head, the room is spinning, and Hajime collapses to the floor, barely conscious.

 

“Hajime!” exclaims everyone in shock. They gather around their leader, but Hajime slowly rises again with his teeth clenched.

 

“Don’t worry about me, I’m just feeling lightheaded,” he gasps as Kenta holds him tightly just in case. “Just get back to work. Nothing else changes just because of this new project.”

 

“You don’t look good Hajime. Maybe we should call an ambulance?” suggests Ren.

 

“There’s no need,” says Hajime, removing himself from Kenta’s tight grasp. He sits down in his chair and secretly reaches for his medication in his briefcase.

 

“Don’t be so stubborn,” scolds Ayumi. “You really don’t look good Hajime.”

 

“I said get back to work. I’m seriously fine, worry about work alright?” growls Hajime with a glare.

 

“But-“

 

“Ayumi-chan, let’s do as he says,” interrupts Kenta. “C’mon now, let’s go back to finishing that contract. You too Hitomi-chan. Ren and Takumi, don’t just stand there looking lost!” Everyone reluctantly returns to their work, but every few minutes, they turn to look at their unstable team leader.

 

Hajime swallows some of his medication quickly and takes a swig of water from his water bottle. It is silent in the room except for the constant sound of a printer making noise and rapid typing.

 

“Hey, what’s with him? Is it because he’s too excited?” whispers Takumi.

“Are you an idiot?” scowls Hitomi. “Look at him! That is not how an excited team leader should look like!”

“Well, then why does he look like that?”

 

Amongst chatter and worried glances, Hajime silently questions possibilities and broken promises that could not be fulfilled. He thinks back to a rainy day in the late summer where he had stood so naïve and lost in love, his heart whispering sonnets as it aches to the rhythm of his lover’s heartbeat. _“Promise me something?”_ is the echo in the back of his mind, the memory clear as day and lonely as night.   _“Stupid, of course we’ll always be there for each other,” c_ omes another vivid echo.

 

“You idiot, that’s not how you do it!” groans Hitomi in the background. “You promised me you would do it right! Now the document is ruined.”

“Hey, at least I tried!” grumbles Takumi. “That’s what’s important.”

“What’s important is keeping your promise!”

 

 _Promise?_ Upon hearing that very word, Hajime’s heart reacted and a sharp increase in pain crouched deep inside Hajime. Perhaps that is what was causing his heart so much trouble Hajime muses. It is neither the accident, his strong medication, nor daily stress from work.

 

“You idiot,” sighs Hitomi. “Now everything’s messed up.”

 “Geez, I said I was sorry. I’ll fix it. Let me do it,” replies Takumi in a gloomy tone.

“Too late! Gosh, don’t you know that you shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep?”

 

Iwaizumi Hajime is a fool, he concludes.  A fool for promising something that he could not keep. He should have known better. But he didn’t. Which is why now his heart was reaping all the sorrows a rainy summer day could offer.  

 


End file.
